For most new university students, the first day of school is a
desperate attempt to hunt down classrooms while trying to orient
themselves in unfamiliar surroundings.
But UBC’s 5,000 new undergraduate students will leave their books
at home Sept. 2 and all classes and labs will be cancelled so they
can attend Imagine UBC: A First Day Event.
Associate Dean of Arts Neil Guppy, who co-chairs Imagine UBC with
fourth-year Political Science student Allison Dunnet, says the program
is a new step in enhancing the excellence of undergraduate education
at UBC.
“New students refresh and renew UBC every year. We want to welcome
them and celebrate the importance UBC places on undergraduate education,”
Guppy says.
All new students have received a personal invitation from President
Martha Piper to meet with senior student mentors from their own
faculty at a pre-arranged spot on campus, and a map showing how
to get there. The student mentors, who will be the group’s leaders
for the day, phoned each new student to clarify details of the day’s
events.
The kick-off takes place in War Memorial Gymnasium at 9:30 a.m.,
after which smaller groups will spread out to their home areas of
campus.
Students will meet their dean, and be taught the skills needed
to survive and thrive at UBC, such as how to balance a social life
with an academic workload.
A campus-wide scavenger hunt designed to help students learn about
their faculty and UBC follows. At 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. the first day
ends when the plaza in front of Koerner Library turns into a carnival
area with music, street entertainment, food, displays by campus
organizations, and much more.
A basketball hoop shoot and a putting green will raise money for
the United Way.
Imagine UBC is made possible by many student, faculty and staff
volunteers. Organizers hope that the first day event will become
an ongoing tradition at UBC.
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